Your Reading List: Before The Winds Of Winter Released

George R.R. Martin's fans can't wait for The Winds of Winter release! Yes, they can't. That's why they search for some other cool books to escape from boredoom of waiting. These books series help them overcome a cold turkey for good fantasy.

The worst nightmare of George R. R. Martin's every fan is... waiting. Waiting for his next book's release. 1-3 years are left till the moment when The Winds of Winter comes to life (or 5-10 years maybe, who knows), and such a long waiting can easily make everyone mad. Is there any medicine that could help here?

Fortunately for us, there are plenty of books which would sound perfect for Martin's fans, and which are able to help you overcome your cold turkey for good fantasy series. An average reader needs up to 10 days to finish one book, so... you need at least 35 cool books to read before The Winds of Winter delights your eyes and minds. Here we have 15 series of books to save you (each series consists of 3 books minimum, that will be more than enough for you to wait for Martin's new masterpiece).

So, what are you waiting for?

1. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

Why you should read it: The story about a great arcanist and his way to become a legend in the world he lives. Here you will find the answer to the question about how power works actually and what we should overcome and sacrifice to get our big game.

Kvothe uses magic, but it is far not the only way to win battles against both his enemies and himself. As well as Martin's books, The Name of the Wind provides a reader with a story about powers and their influence on the world around us.

A quote to remember: “We understand how dangerous a mask can be. We all become what we pretend to be.”

Find it on Amazon: The Name of the Wind

2. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley

Why you should read it: We all know the influence all female characters of Martin's books have on the story development. Like A Song of Ice and Fire, The Blue Sword is a fantastic story about mythical kingdom, its king, and a girl who will help him get a powerful blue sword and bear it, as it's only a woman who may hold it in her arms.

Passion, magic, power, and suspense. Isn't it a perfect cocktail for those readers who wait for an interesting fantastic story to impress them?

A quote to remember: “...My friend, there are some things that I cannot tell you. Some I will tell you in time; some, others will tell you; some you may never know, or you may be the first to find the answers.”

Find it on Amazon: The Blue Sword

3. Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Why you should read it: Here you will find another 7 kingdoms and a protagonist who was born to kill people with bare hands since her childhood. Such a skill is called a Grace, and all Gracelings serve to do tortures and punishment. Katsa (a protagonist) is ready to accept her destiny, but everything changes when she meets a stranger named Po who helps her discover the truth about herself and her powers.

A quote to remember: “When a monster stopped behaving like a monster, did it stop being a monster? Did it become something else?”

Find it on Amazon: Graceling

4. The Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson

Why you should read it: This series is perfect for those people who like reading long stories with a huge cast of characters, interesting plot, multiple arcing, many small details, magic, power, and epic dialogues to check again and again. Sounds familiar?

The Malazan Book of the Fallen series consists of ten novels, and it will keep you busy while you are waiting for George Martin's next book release. And you can always check the list of Martin's favourite books by the way, and start reading the books from it to understand the way of his thinking better.

A quote to remember: “Every throne is an arrow-butt.”

Find it on Amazon: The Malazan Book of the Fallen

5. The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Why you should read it: The first book of the well-known Dark Tower series, that is a real must-read for fantasy's every fan. It took Stephen King 22 years to finish the story of Roland and his journey to find a tower of both metaphorical and physical nature. The series consists of eight books, the last one of which has been finished in 2012.

Many nations, different magic worlds, a lot of challenges to overcome, various creatures to deal with, a long path to find a way... It's impossible to describe all epic moments of this book, as it is worth calling immortal literature in the world of fantasy genre.

A quote to remember: “Go then, there are other worlds than these.”

Find it on Amazon: The Gunslinger

6. The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

Why you should read it: If Sansa is one of your favorite characters in George Martin's story, then this book is a must-read for you. The story of Elizabeth Woodville, a common woman who becomes Queen of England will not leave anyone indifferent.

All events of The Write Queen take place during the Wars of the Roses, that remind us the times described in Martin's series. No book can be a better reading for A Game of Thrones fan, can't it?

A quote to remember: “A man will always promise to do more than he can do to a woman he cannot understand.”

Find it on Amazon: The White Queen

7. The Darkness that Comes Before by R. Scott Bakker

Why you should read it: The first book of the Prince of Nothing series will give you everything you look for in Martin's books: fantasy worlds, wars, intellectual battles, intriguing plot, epic characters, conspiracies, and passion.

That's definitely your thing to read, if you can't live without reading a good fantasy.

A quote to remember: “Faith is the truth of passion. Since no passion is more true than another, faith is the truth of nothing.”

Find it on Amazon: The Darkness that Comes Before

8. Chronicles of the Black Company by Glen Cook

Why you should read it: Wizards, politics, decades of war, intrigues, and exciting fights – this book is perfect for those fans who consider the Wall, Jon Snow, and the Night's Watch their favorite parts of George Martin's series.

A quote to remember: “Evil is relative, Annalist. You can’t hang a sign on it. You can’t touch it or taste it or cut it with a sword. Evil depends on where you are standing, pointing your indicting finger.”

Find it on Amazon: Chronicles of the Black Company

9. The Hedge Knight by George R. R. Martin

Why you should read it: This is a kind of prequel to your beloved saga, though you will find different characters here. This book is one of the Tales of Dunk and Egg series, a storybook of novellas written by Martin and published in 2005; two other books of this series include The Sworn Sword and The Mystery Knight.

A quote to remember: “Sweet lady," said Florian, "all men are fools, and all men are knights, where women are concerned.”

Find it on Amazon: The Hedge Knight

10. Shadowmarch by Tad Williams

Why you should read it: Like Martin's series, this book will indulge you with multiple plotlines, different story lines, and many interesting characters. As well as A Song of Ice and Fire, this book was criticized for taking a long time to get moving.

Shadowmarch is also a part of series with the same name, and unlike Martin's series, it is complete. All books of this series are written and published already, so, you will not have to wait for their release to find out the end of the whole story.

A quote to remember: “Remember that each light between sunrise and sunset is worth dying for at least once.”

Find it on Amazon: Shadowmarch

11. The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

Why you should read it: A struggle for the throne between ten princes gives readers an impression they've finally found a series worth checking while Martin's new book is not out yet. “Good” and “evil” are not clearly delineated here, and each chapter describes one character and his long way to getting out of complicated situations, conspiracies and intrigues.

The Way of Kings is the first book of the Stormlight Archive series. So, it will give you enough time to finish reading and brighten up the waiting of The Winds of Winter release.

A quote to remember: “Life before Death.
Strength before Weakness.
Journey before Destination.”

Find it on Amazon: The Way of Kings

12. The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan

Why you should read it: The series of 14 books about Rand al'Thor, a possible Dragon Reborn who can save the whole world from the Dark One. Simple as that, but this epic fantasy is one of the most sold books after Lord of the Rings, and this fact can serve as a proof of its worth.

All books of this series are finished and published, so, you are welcome to start reading it right now.

A quote to remember: “Well perhaps you humans do have short lives but you do so much with them. Always jumping around, always so hasty and you have the whole world to do it in.”

Find it on Amazon: The Wheel of Time

13. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

Why you should read it: No heroes can be found here. A protagonist of this book is a torturer who does not know anything about good, and this fact makes The Blade Itself much more cruel than Martin's series. So, if you decide to start reading it, do not say that we didn't warn you!

Pain, selfishness, betrayal, cynicism... The explosive cocktail of human malices to defeat. This book will not leave anyone indifferent, and it's a must-check for every fan of fantasy genre.

A quote to remember: “Well. What can we do, except try to do better?”

Find it on Amazon: The Blade Itself

14. The Warded Man by Peter Brett

Why you should read it: This series is not finished yet, though Brett is a Formula 1 driver in comparison with Martin. Here you will find demons who have plagued the world and a Deliverer who has to lead humankind in their victory.

Those readers who like the intimate scenes of Game of Thrones will definitely find this book interesting. We could not imagine it was possible to meet more intimate moments than Martin's series has for us, but The Warded Man dispelled all our doubts.

A quote to remember: “Let others determine your worth and you're already lost, because no one wants people worth more than themselves.”

Find it on Amazon: The Warded Man

15. Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb

Why you should read it: A must-read series for all fans of Jon Snow and his direwolf Ghost. A protagonist of Robin Hobb's Farseer Trilogy series is Fitz, a king's bastard who has a special gift called the Wit (ability to bond with animals, dogs in particular).

This is a story about how bastards have to accept their destiny and fight against every injustice.

A quote to remember: “Nothing takes the heart out of a man more than the expectation of failure.”

Find it on Amazon: Assassin's Apprentice